Analysis of Ye Wearie Wayfarer



Hark! the bells of distant cattle
Waft across the range,
Through the golden-tufted wattle
Music low and strange;
Like the marriage of peal fairies
Comes the tinkling sound,
Or like chimes of sweet St Mary's
On far English ground.
How my courser champs the snaffle,
And with nostrils spread,
Snorts and scarcely seems to ruffle
Fern leaves with his tread;
Cool and pleasant on his haunches
Blows the evening breeze,
Through the overhanging branches
Of the wattle trees;

Onward! to the Southern Ocean
Glides the breath of Spring.
Onward! with a dreamy motion,
I, too, glide and sing
Forward! forward! still we wander
Tinted hills that lie
In the red horizon yonder
Is the goal so nigh?

Whisper, spring wind, softly singing,
Whisper in my ear;
Respite and nepenthe bringing,
Can the goal be near?
Laden with the dew of vespers,
From the fragrant sky,
In my ear the wind that wispers
Seems to make reply
'Question not, but live and labour
'Til yon goal be won,
Helping every feeble neighbour,
Seeking help from none;
Life is mostly froth and bubble,
Two things stand like stone,
Kindness in another's trouble,
Courage in your own.


Scheme ABABCDCDAEAECCXC FGFGHIHI GXGXCICIXFHFAJAJ
Poetic Form Tetractys  (30%)
Etheree  (30%)
Metre 10111010 10101 10101010 10101 10101110 101001 11111110 11101 1110101 01101 10101110 11111 1010111 10101 1010010 10101 10101010 10111 10101010 11101 10101110 10111 00101010 10111 10111010 10011 100110 10111 1010111 10101 0110111 11101 1011101 11111 10100101 10111 11101010 11111 10001010 10011
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 1,099
Words 196
Sentences 11
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 16, 8, 16
Lines Amount 40
Letters per line (avg) 22
Words per line (avg) 5
Letters per stanza (avg) 298
Words per stanza (avg) 65
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 01, 2023

59 sec read
502

Adam Lindsay Gordon

Adam Lindsay Gordon was an Australian poet, jockey and politician. more…

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